In the heated debate about Intercollegiate Athletics at Rutgers University and President Richard McCormick, it is important that New Jersey residents not lose sight of the "big picture" -- the remarkable progress made by all of us (students, faculty and staff) during President McCormick's tenure, in addition to the successes of our sports teams that we are all proud of.

Most people agree that a leader needs the following attributes as a minimum: vision, integrity, ability to select competent colleagues, and talent to inspire and produce excellent results. I have witnessed Richard McCormick's leadership since I joined Rutgers in 1989 and, in the last few years since he returned as president, I have seen a systematic and accelerating improvement across the board.

I am writing this letter not as Rutgers administrator but as a caring faculty member and as a parent of a Rutgers alumna and a Rutgers graduating senior. This is not an official Rutgers response; it just represents my views as a Rutgers-New Brunswick professor.

While Intercollegiate Athletics represents only 3% of the University budget, it attracts disproportionate attention. Granted, its results are easy for all to see but, if we are to 'score' Rutgers and President McCormick, we must also consider the following items, noting that each one could well provide material for a news article:

- A formidable transformation of undergraduate education, still in progress, that has started paying off already. It was the major reason why we were re-accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education with glowing praise.

- The creation of the School of Arts and Sciences to unify the four residential liberal arts and sciences colleges into a single entity that provides unified admission and graduation standards and a core curriculum - in progress - to address the needs of the 21st century.

- Enhancement of learning communities (self-selected groups of students and faculty, who share goals and common intellectual interests) as a result of the transformation of undergraduate education.

- Unification - for the first time - of the Rutgers Alumni Association. As can be seen from the above items, this unification theme cuts across all aspects of Rutgers activities and it will be one of the major achievements that President McCormick will be remembered long after he leaves Rutgers.

- The largest entering class (7,000) in 30 years. Our student body reflects excellence (132 valedictorians and salutatorians) and diversity (Diversity Inc. ranked us at the top five colleges and universities for diversity management).

- A record fund-raising campaign of $121 million for fiscal year 2008, followed by the recent largest single donation ($13 million) in Rutgers history.

- Excellence in academic progress among students on the football team (ranked 3rd in the nation by the NCAA).

- Initiation of the Rutgers Future Scholars Program to provide mentorship and -ultimately - free educations to deserving eighth graders from Newark, Camden, New Brunswick, and Piscataway.

- Planning, design and construction on the Livingston campus to make it a center for business and professional studies.

- Active involvement with local government to build a sense of community on all three campuses: Newark, Camden, and New Brunswick/Piscataway.

- Expansion of the Business School's two-year program to a full four-year degree program to meet growing demand at Camden and New Brunswick.

- Inauguration of an annual "Rutgers Day," scheduled for April 25, 2009 at the New Brunswick campus, where we will showcase the university and build awareness of its programs for the people of New Jersey (and beyond).

- Establishment of the Byrne Family Seminars, taught by Rutgers faculty on a voluntary basis, outside their normal teaching load, to introduce first-year students to cutting-edge research and scholarship. President McCormick himself teaches such a course, as do many of the members of his cabinet. Now in its second year, it has attracted 221 colleagues to teach incoming students a wide variety of academic topics. It has also caught the attention of alumnus Jack Byrne, who has donated generously in support of this program. I am highlighting this item because, in my opinion, this remarkable program is a prime example of what Rutgers is all about: engaging the administration, the faculty, the students, the staff and the alumni in its drive toward excellence.

The theme that best characterizes the Rutgers spirit under President McCormick, as I see it, is "driving for excellence through diversity and inclusion." Of course, the official motto "Jersey Roots, Global Reach" says the same thing in fewer words, if one considers how diverse New Jersey itself is and how our excellence is translating into global recognition. This is precisely why New Jerseyans should be proud of Rutgers -- both on and off the field.

Thomas V. Papathomas is Busch Campus dean, a professor in the department of biomedical engineering and associated director of the Laboratory of Vision Research at Rutgers University.